Vixen Industry Couple: Alvin Ailey’s Glenn and Linda Celeste Sims

Vixen

How is it working together? Is it always easy or how do you get over being a couple and dancing together all the time?

GS: Well, in the beginning it was when we were younger, I would say it was a little more difficult because of communication. We were both growing up and we were both learning more about ourselves and still trying to work at the same time. So, it was a little bitt harder in the beginning. But in this day and age, I would say that what we went through and those time periods set and laid the foundation for where we are now, and how we can communicate more openly and discuss our day and how we’re feeling.

What is the best and worst thing about working together?

LCS: The best thing is that I can close my eyes and I know that he’ll be there to catch me. It’s a sense of trust, working with him, especially later on in our careers cause we really didn’t dance as much as partners in the beginning. Glenn’s been here 17 years and I’ve been here 18 years, so I would say like the past 10 years we’ve been working more consistently together as partners and what more do I want? So there’s a whole other level that I work on when I’m performing or dancing with him. It’s like I know we’ve got this so let me work on a different kind of artistry so I would say I’m able to grow as an artist more with him because like I said, I don’t have to fake it. I don’t think there’s a worst, I think at this point right now we’re at a point where’s he’s like, ‘I know she’s not going to like if I do this so let me not do it.’ So I’m not like that, I don’t think there ever is a worst because I’m making a decision to be with this person so its what I want to work on.

GS: I would agree with that, there’s not a worst part in it. It’s a true blessing to be able to share your passion for the art of dance with a person who also understands it and has a passion for it too, and for me to be able to work with Linda, she is really my opinion of a female dancer. So to be able to work with her hand in hand on certain Ballets and being able to create beauty on stage and magic and all that other stuff. I would always put myself with her because there is just so many different textures that she brings to each piece of work that that she dances and allows me not to have to being worrying about oh, I have to watch her and watch her and watch her, I can watch her and still breathe with her because we do sleep together so therefore your rhythms are in the same wavelengths.